Free Agency Rumors: Boozer, Williams, Heat
The latest free agent news..
- The Nets, Mavs, Rockets, Lakers, Heat, and Spurs are in on veteran big man Carlos Boozer, Chris Broussard of ESPN.com tweets.
- In addition to the incumbent Kings (whose interest was previously reported), the Wizards, Rockets, Lakers, Heat, Suns, and Knicks are expected to show interest in forward Derrick Williams, Broussard tweets. Williams can become a restricted free agent this summer if the Kings tender him a qualifying offer worth $4,045,894. The former No. 2 overall pick averaged 8.3 PPG and 2.7 RPG in 74 games last season.
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The general sense among teams around the league is that Kyle O’Quinn will be able to draw $4-5MM salaries on his next deal and Shane Larkin $2-3MM on his, as Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders writes in his NBA AM piece. Sources tell Kyler that Gerald Green could be had for around $5MM a year, or slightly less on a deal that runs three or four years.
- The Mavs, Pacers, Grizzlies, Clippers, and incumbent Suns are the teams showing the most interest in high-flying big man Brandan Wright, Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com tweets.
- Jamario Moon is looking to make an NBA comeback and has signed with Hazan Sports Management, according to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (on Twitter).
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Kings, Rajon Rondo Have Mutual Interest
JUNE 30TH, 3:20pm: Rudy Gay is recruiting Rondo to the Kings, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com hears (Twitter link). Sacramento has nonetheless reportedly been pursuing trades involving Gay.
JUNE 23RD, 8:57am: The Kings and soon-to-be free agent Rajon Rondo have mutual interest, as the idea of signing a one-year deal with Sacramento to rehabilitate his value around the league intrigues the point guard, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, who writes amid the latest in the DeMarcus Cousins saga. Rondo is almost certain to leave the Mavericks after a disastrous few months there, as Mavs coach Rick Carlisle essentially confirmed after Rondo and the team had an apparent mutual parting of ways during the playoffs.
Sacramento has long coveted Rondo, as reports have indicated, and the Kings were among the teams who spoke with the Celtics shortly before Boston traded him to Dallas in December. Neither the arrival this spring of Vlade Divac as vice president of basketball and franchise operations, a role in which he controls the front office, nor Rondo’s declining play have apparently dissuaded Sacramento from its affection for the 29-year-old.
Rondo’s value at this point is difficult to peg, with speculation suggesting that he’d struggle to make salaries of $10-12MM on his next deal. Sacramento has about $53MM in guaranteed salary against a projected $67.1MM cap for next season, not counting its first-round pick at No. 6., but with the team pursuing trades for just about everyone on the roster, according to Wojnarowski, it’s tough to project what the Kings will have to spend. The Lakers, with whom the Kings have reportedly engaged in exploratory talks regarding Cousins, are also likely Rondo suitors.
Kings Eye Jrue Holiday, Schröder, Jeremy Lin
The Kings are eyeing Jrue Holiday and Dennis Schröder among potential trade targets as they seek a point guard to play along with Darren Collison, reports Chris Broussard of ESPN (Twitter link), who confirms the team’s interest in Ty Lawson, too. Broussard adds Jeremy Lin to the team’s list of free agent targets and confirms that Sacramento is still high on Rajon Rondo. Kings ownership is making a hard push to sign Rondo and fellow reported target Monta Ellis, as Chris Mannix of SI.com hears (on Twitter), pointing out that Sacramento, with about $53MM in guaranteed salaries against a $67.1MM salary cap, can likely afford only one of those two.
Ellis, a shooting guard, would appear the lower priority, as Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee says the team is making point guard and small forward more of a priority (Twitter link). The team appears to be casting a wide net as it seeks a new point man. Coach George Karl has long seemingly been enamored with the idea of trading for Lawson, as Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck wrote months ago, though the Kings are reportedly investigating the idea of firing Karl as they gauge John Calipari‘s interest in joining the team. Lawson is set to make approximately $12.404MM next season on a contract that runs through 2016/17. Holiday’s deal with the Pelicans runs through the same season, though he’ll make only about $10.596MM next season. Schröder, whose rookie scale deal with the Hawks also goes through 2016/17, is by far the cheapest trade option, as next season he’s in line for roughly $1.763MM.
Lin would also seemingly come relatively cheaply after a largely unsuccessful stint with the Lakers. His scoring average has declined in each of the three years since his “Linsanity” season with the Knicks.
Kings Reach Out To John Calipari
11:39am: The Kings deny Wojnarowski’s report, tweets Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee.
11:02am: Calipari, as he’s done in the past, took to Twitter to say that he’s not looking for another job and that the Kings haven’t offered him one. He acknowledged talking to Ranadive about Cousins and No. 6 overall pick Willie Cauley-Stein, but wrote in all capital letters, “I will be at Kentucky.” (All five Twitter links here).
10:16am: Kings owner Vivek Ranadive and other members of his ownership group have spoken with Kentucky coach John Calipari to feel out his interest in coaching the team and running its front office, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. It would require a multiyear contract worth at least $10MM a year to lure him, Wojnarowski adds, but Sacramento has had lawyers examine the contract of coach George Karl to see if he can be fired with cause for reportedly speaking to other teams to see if he can arrange DeMarcus Cousins a trade, as Wojnarowski details. It’s a long shot that the Kings would be able to terminate Karl in such a way that would allow them to recoup the nearly $10MM in guaranteed money left on his deal, which runs another three years.
Ranadive is going after Calipari in part to see if he can convince Cousins to change his mind about his desire to be traded to the Lakers, according to Wojnarowski, a desire that has reportedly come about amid Karl’s apparent quest to see him traded. Calipari coached Cousins during the center’s lone season at Kentucky.
Hiring Calipari would represent yet another shift for the Kings under Ranadive, who’ve already employed three coaches and two front office chiefs since he took control of the franchise two years ago. League officials and confidants of the owner have tried to prevail upon him to stop his frequent shakeups, sources tell Wojnarowski. Ranadive replaced former GM Pete D’Alessandro atop the front office structure this spring with vice president of basketball and franchise operations Vlade Divac, but executives and agents grew frustrated in dealing with Divac at draft time, as the newly minted executive is unfamiliar with salary cap and collective bargaining agreement rules, Wojnarowski hears. Ranadive considered hiring NBA vice president of basketball operations Kiki Vandeweghe to lead the front office before turning to Divac, Wojnarowski reports.
Calipari has consistently maintained he’s satisfied at Kentucky even as he continues to listen to overtures from the NBA. He had a level of interest in the Pelicans this spring, but New Orleans didn’t want him to lead its entire basketball operation, according to Wojnarowski.
Pacific Notes: Williams, Lakers, Looney
The Kings have expressed interest in bringing forward Derrick Williams back next season, though the organization’s first priority is to upgrade the point guard position, Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com tweets. Sacramento is reportedly interested in the Suns‘ Eric Bledsoe, and free agent Rodney Stuckey, as well has been mentioned as a potential landing spot for Rajon Rondo. Williams can become a restricted free agent this summer if the Kings tender him a qualifying offer worth $4,045,894. Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Despite the reports that Kings coach George Karl wants center DeMarcus Cousins traded, Karl is excited to see what a pairing of Cousins and rookie Willie Cauley-Stein can do, Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee relays (Twitter links). Karl believes the duo will mesh well together because each has a different skillset on defense, Jones adds.
- The Lakers are expected to try and add a rim-protecting big man, a 3-and-D capable small forward, frontcourt depth, as well as a veteran point guard this summer, Jabari Davis of Basketball Insiders writes. Davis lists LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Monroe, Robin Lopez, Jimmy Butler, and Wayne Ellington as potential free agent targets for the Lakers.
- Steve Kerr doesn’t believe that the Warriors winning a championship his first season as coach will increase the pressure on him, but instead, it will allow him to continue to just be himself, Tim Kawakami of The Bay Area News Group writes. “It’s funny you say that because as an observer and an analyst for TNT and even as a player, I always felt that when a coach won a championship, it freed him up to be himself,” Kerr responded when asked if his approach would change next season. “Coaching in the NBA is such a fleeting thing; guys get fired left and right, and so a lot of guys coach out of fear. And they try to hang onto their jobs. I always felt like the ones who won titles were freed up to just do it their way and to not worry about anything.”
- Todd Ramasar, the agent for Warriors draftee Kevon Looney, denied the reports that his client underwent surgery on his hip last year, Diamond Leung of The Bay Area News Group writes. Looney believes that he can continue to play without surgery but will undergo a medical evaluation to determine if a procedure is necessary, Leung adds. “I had suffered a hip injury when I first got to UCLA, and I played the whole season with it,” Looney said. “I went through the [draft] workouts with it. I still can play now. I can play just fine. I can walk good. I’m not hurting right now. I’m looking to the doctors to tell me what they really want to do, but this is an injury that I had, and I can actually play with, and I can actually do well with it.“
- Though the Warriors declined to extend Justin Holiday a qualifying offer, making him an unrestricted free agent this offseason, the team may look to re-sign him for less than the $1.147MM tender it would have required to make Holiday a restricted free agent, Rusty Simmons of The San Francisco Chronicle tweets.
Kings Eye Eric Bledsoe
3:24pm: Suns coach Jeff Hornacek didn’t address the Kings rumor, but he denied any talks with the Knicks regarding Bledsoe, as the coach spoke today on SiriusXM NBA Radio, and as Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic transcribes (on Twitter). “Eric is a big part of our future and there was no entertainment of that,” Hornacek said.
11:00am: The Kings are expected to express interest in trading for Eric Bledsoe, a source tells Sean Deveney of The Sporting News. That wording doesn’t necessarily indicate that Sacramento will indeed pursue him, but the Kings are far more focused on making an upgrade at point guard than potential DeMarcus Cousins trades, a league executive said to Deveney.
Deveney reported a week ago that the Suns had discussed Bledsoe trade scenarios with teams including the Knicks, and while multiple other reports painted a different picture, the Suns would seriously consider trading Bledsoe if they re-sign Brandon Knight, as they’re reportedly set to do. Bledsoe is set to make $13.5MM next season in the second year of a five-year, $70MM deal.
One GM expressed concern over Bledsoe’s long-term health and coachability, and league sources indicate to Deveney that finding a taker for him wouldn’t be easy for Phoenix. The Kings also reportedly have interest in Rajon Rondo, who apparently finds the idea of a one-year deal with Sacramento intriguing, but he, too, carries some negative baggage coming off a disastrous half-season stint in Dallas.
The same league executive who said Sacramento is looking at point guards more fervently than Cousins trades told Deveney that he expects the Suns would be willing to wait to trade Bledsoe until after the market for star free agents dries up around the league, so it doesn’t appear that Phoenix is necessarily in a rush.
Rockets, Kings Eye Rodney Stuckey
MONDAY, 10:25am: Stuckey would like to hear from the Bulls, a source tells Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago.com. It’s unclear whether the Bulls reciprocate his apparent interest, and that would seem less likely in the wake of Kirk Hinrich‘s reported decision to opt in. Chicago will likely have only the $3.376MM taxpayer’s mid-level exception to spend on outside free agents.
FRIDAY, 3:29pm: The Rockets and Kings are expected to be among the teams with interest when Rodney Stuckey when he hits free agency next week, and he’ll prioritize signing with a contender, league sources tell Shams Charania of RealGM. That would presumably give an edge to Houston over Sacramento, though the mutual interest between the combo guard and the Pacers is strong, according to Charania. The semantics of the report are a bit curious, since Charania indicates that interest from the Rockets and Kings is only “expected,” but it would appear that the 29-year-old is at the very least on the radar for both teams.
Indiana has Non-Bird rights on Stuckey, so the Pacers can’t exceed 20% more than the minimum to re-sign him without using cap space or an exception. Still, president of basketball operations Larry Bird made it clear this spring that the eight-year veteran is a priority, and David West‘s apparent decision to opt out gives the team a legitimate chance to open cap room.
Rockets GM Daryl Morey isn’t optimistic that Houston will end up with cap space to burn this summer, though the team would have the $5.434MM mid-level exception if it stays above the cap. That amount may well be earmarked for Josh Smith, however.
The Kings are in flux amid the DeMarcus Cousins saga, though they seem likely to be able to open up enough cap space to make a competitive bid to Stuckey. Still, Sacramento would probably be a fallback option for him if he is indeed set on joining a contending team. Indiana might not be a contender, either, though the return of Paul George for a full season at least gives the Pacers a reasonable shot in the relatively weak Eastern Conference.
Western Rumors: Gasol, Cousins, Aldridge
Marc Gasol has no interest in signing with the Lakers this offseason, Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times reports. The 30-year-old’s lack of interest is primarily because of the uneasy last few years his older brother, Pau, spent with the team, according to numerous people familiar with the situation. The Mavs, Spurs, Knicks and Lakers are reportedly putting together proposals to lure the big man away from the Grizzlies. He made his affection known for the city of Memphis, but has not ruled out any other destination.
Here’s more from around Los Angeles:
- The Lakers would trade No. 2 overall pick D’Angelo Russell to the Kings if that is what it takes to get DeMarcus Cousins, a league source tells Mark Heisler of the Los Angeles Daily News. However, Heisler adds that a trade isn’t likely. Kings Owner Vivek Ranadive reportedly gave agent Dan Fegan permission to try to engineer trade proposals that would send Cousins to the Lakers, but Kings front office chief Vlade Divac is instead trying to see if the team can mend the relationship with the 24-year-old center.
- Bresnahan notes in the same piece that LaMarcus Aldridge, who owns a home in Orange County, is a more realistic prize for the Lakers in free agency. The power forward is reportedly growing fond of the team. A maximum salary contract for the big man will cost an estimated $18.96MM and Los Angeles will have some $23MM in cap space once it declines Jordan Hill‘s team option as expected.
Kings Have Considered Firing George Karl?
FRIDAY, 1:23am: Vice president of basketball and franchise operations Vlade Divac said the issues are between himself and Karl, not Ranadive and Karl, as Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee relays (Twitter links). Divac didn’t elaborate, but Jones hears that he didn’t like Karl going behind his back to negotiate possible trades. Divac nonetheless added that he has no shortage of respect for Karl and wants to believe that Karl and Cousins can work with each other, Jones also tweets.
“I respect my coach and I think he’s great but he has to trust me to do my job. That’s all,” Divac said, according to Jones (Twitter link).
5:17pm: Credible sources inside the Kings issued strong denials that the team has made Karl’s job status a matter of discussion, tweets Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee.
4:56pm: Karl is no longer in the loop on draft discussions, Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times tweets.
THURSDAY, 4:01pm: Kings owner Vivek Ranadive has considered firing George Karl, according to Chris Broussard of ESPN.com. Ranadive is upset with Karl’s desire to trade center DeMarcus Cousins, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.
No potential replacement for Karl has been mentioned or considered yet, according to Broussard. Meanwhile, firing Karl will not be a panacea for the tensions between Cousins and the franchise.
“If you fire Karl, now you can’t control Cousins because he’ll know he’s running the place,” the source told Broussard. “Now he’ll feel like he’s telling you what to do.”
No firing is imminent, which perhaps explains Broussard’s usage of the past tense in saying Ranadive has “considered” the move, but the owner has broached the subject with team execs over the last few days, per the source. When Ranadive was considering hiring Karl in February, some members of the organization told him it was a bad idea. Recently, the owner told at least one of those people that he was right.
The Kings hired Karl In February, giving him a four-year deal worth $14.5MM. Karl is guaranteed $11MM in total.
Draft Rumors: Lakers, Okafor, Russell
The Lakers are leaning towards taking Jahlil Okafor with the No. 2 overall pick, according to Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times (on Twitter). However, Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (on Twitter) hears that the Lakers are undecided with both Okafor and D’Angelo Russell in play. Of course, the only word that counts will come from commissioner Adam Silver later tonight. Here’s the latest draft news..
- Frank Kaminsky is moving up draft boards in the final hours, league sources tell David Aldridge of NBA.com (on Twitter). He could very well go higher than No. 9, which is where the Hornets would like him.
- Kings owner Vivek Ranadive was known to be very high on Willie Cauley-Stein but Sam Amick of USA Today Sports (on Twitter) isn’t hearing much of that today.
- Several league sources tell Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (on Twitter) that they expect Cauley-Stein to slip. The big man didn’t shine in workouts or interviews and his ankle is a concern.
- The Jazz are targeting Stanley Johnson and Justise Winslow at No. 12 and they’re willing to trade up if they feel it’s necessary, according to Spencer Checketts of 1280 The Zone (via Twitter links). If those trade-up scenarios don’t pan out, Utah could instead move down. If they do move down, Checketts lists the Celtics (No. 16), Bucks (17) and, Rockets (No. 18) as possible partners.
- Marcin Gortat during a press conference in Poland said the Pistons asked him about prospect Mateusz Ponitka, according to Sportando (on Twitter). Ponitka worked out for Detroit earlier this week. The shooting guard looks to be a second round (or, undrafted) prospect.
- The Bucks like UNLV forward Christian Wood, but feel that he’ll be chosen later in the first round, Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times tweets. Milwaukee owns the No. 17 pick in the first round and the No 46 pick in the second.
- David Pick of Eurobasket.net (on Twitter) hears that projected second-round pick Shawn Dawson hopes to slide under the radar and go undrafted. Dawson is currently ranked as the No. 66 prospect in the draft by DraftExpress.